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Ornaments are so much more than tiny bits of glass or cloth. Like photographs, Christmas ornaments draw forth memories and a sense of family tradition and belonging, even for the most unsentimental of persons. As we pull out the boxes, carefully unwrapping each memory, piling the tissue paper to the side, we share family stories, reminisce about relatives and teach our traditions to the younger generation. Some ornaments are tree fillers, of course, but every family with a Christmas tree has a few sentimental pieces that are treasured for generations.

Last year, I accidentally broke an ornament I hoped would become that special treasure for the Tongginator.

It was her favorite.

And I broke it.

Don't ask me how I did it because I actually don't remember. I only remember her crestfallen face and my tears as we both stared at the remnants of...

To learn what ornament I broke, and why it upset me so, head over to Grown In My Heart. Because that's where I am today. And if you ever wondered about Christmas traditions in China, check out my post from yesterday, Christmas in China.

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My grandmother hand knitted my stocking when I was a little girl. When I married, she made one for my husband. Then each one of my bio kids. By the time we adopted our little ones, my grandma was no longer with us. I paid a lady a hundred dollars per stocking to have matching ones made for my little girls. It took me YEARS to find someone who had this pattern.

Our tree fell over one year and the only ornament that broke was the Mickey Mouse one we bought on our Honeymoon--Disneyland in December is wonderful. I have other Mickey ornaments, but they aren't the same.

Have you thought about paying some one to paint a copy? It could be pricey and wouldn't be exactly the same, but it looks like you have a relatively good picture of at least one side. Here is one site I found that does this: Here! http://www.afk.com/ornaments/ornaments.tpl

Yep, found it at AsiaForKids. Another option would be to commission an artist through the Alchemy service on Etsy to re-produce the ornament. The prices are usually pretty reasonable, and there are lots of great artists who use Etsy.

It looks like other people found one for you. It's funny, because when I googled "santa great wall china" your blog post came up as the second hit. Pretty cool.

I sure hope you can find a replacement, because that is one cool, cool decoration. I have half a mind to buy one for myself. I love how you try to incorporate Chinese traditions in a way that is comfortable for your family.

What a beautiful post TM, you wrote so perfectly how I feel about our ornaments. They're a part of our family history. About 1/4th of our ornaments have some very special tie to China as they were brought home from our 2 trips.